43 US college students awarded scholarships to study in UK
Brown College senior Jackson Neagli received a Marshall Scholarship, which allows American students to study in the U.K.Washington Post (This Associated Press article appeared in more than 50 media outlets.)http://wapo.st/2jNnEzL

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Builders said their homes were out of a flood zone. Then Harvey came.
Jim Blackburn, a professor in the practice of environmental law and the co-director of Rice’s Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center, is quoted in an article on the manipulation of federal flood maps by developers. Blackburn also is quoted in articles on the difficulty of discussing climate change in conservative states and residents of Richmond, Texas, deciding whether to move or rebuild following flooding along the Brazos River.New York Times (This article appeared in more than 10 other media outlets.)http://nyti.ms/2ApDMBxWaking conservative climate movement struggles against denialism in red statesForbes (This article also appeared in Easy Branches World News.)http://bit.ly/2AthkVXSunk costsTexas Observerhttp://bit.ly/2kppc7b

What the Iran sanctions case in New York means for Turkey and Erdogan
A. Kadir Yildirim, research scholar in the Baker Institute for Public Policy’s Center for the Middle East, wrote an op-ed on a trial in which Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is accused of approving a scheme to evade U.S. sanctions against Iran.Washington Post (This article appeared in more than 10 other media outlets.)http://wapo.st/2A2RH1q

The new OPEC-Russia friendship: Brought to you by US shale producers
Graduate student Peter Volkmar authored an op-ed on the relationship between OPEC and Russia after an agreement was reached to extend oil output cuts through the end of 2018 in an effort to boost prices.Forbeshttp://bit.ly/2klhD1d

7 Texas lawmakers leaving Congress means a younger, more diverse delegation
Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor of political science, fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and fellow at Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, authored an op-ed on the changing demographics of the Texas congressional delegation. Jones also is quoted in articles on Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez considering a run for Texas governor, social media’s impact on the next presidential election, next year’s Texas Republican primary ballot, moderates navigating a highly partisan period in politics and President Donald Trump’s use of Twitter.The Hillhttp://bit.ly/2klefU6Savior or bust: Can Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez be a credible candidate for governor? Dallas Morning News (Subscription is required.)http://bit.ly/2At4K99The power of social media, and activist groups, critical to next presidential runSan Antonio Express-News (Subscription is required.)http://bit.ly/2noiEq8Republican ballot propositions hit back at StrausThe Texas Monitorhttp://bit.ly/2ijfZsJMeet the moderatesGoverninghttp://bit.ly/2BHLrJEComo Trump usa Twitter para ventilar viejos conflictos personales y de negociosUnivision (An English translation is not available. This article also appeared at Mundo Latino.)http://bit.ly/2ifXntr

Nicolas Maduro is cracking down on rivals and Venezuela’s oil industry could take a big hit
Francisco Monaldi, a fellow in Latin American energy policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in an article on Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro’s actions. Monaldi also is quoted in articles on foreign oil companies’ operations in the country and a new cryptocurrency launched by Maduro.Business Insider (This article also appeared at Metals News, Markets Insider, Bullfax, Latest Nigerian News and Insider.)http://read.bi/2zOAlBbForeign oil companies in Venezuela feel the strainFinancial Times (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in CetUS News.)http://bit.ly/2jdja5MThe ‘petro’: Venezuela’s oil-backed cryptocurrencyTech Financialshttp://bit.ly/2AttKx3

Great heights and spectacular sights: The 16 coolest buildings on earth
James Turrell’s “Twilight Epiphany” Skyspace on the Suzanne Deal Booth Centennial Pavilion at Rice is mentioned.Yahoo Newshttps://yhoo.it/2At45ES

Is our language normalizing climate change?
Rice’s Center for Energy and Environmental Research in the Human Sciences’ podcast with Robert Macfarlane, a contributor to The Guardian, examines the effect of the term “climate change” on response to the issue.Seattle Post-Intelligencerhttp://bit.ly/2BxS28D

Why do people who have less give more?
Utpal Dholakia, the George R. Brown Professor of Marketing at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business and a marketing and consumer behavior expert, authored an op-ed on philanthropy.Khaleej Timeshttp://bit.ly/2je5W8Y

Obama’s sage advice: ‘Think before you tweet’
Professor of History Douglas Brinkley is quoted in an article on former President Barack Obama’s Twitter advice to President Donald Trump.Click Lancashirehttp://bit.ly/2iggvaJ

Estados Unidos: Nació el primer bebe de un útero trasplantado
Vivian Ho, the James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and professor of economics, is quoted in an article on the first baby born in the U.S. from a woman with a transplanted uterus. Ho also is quoted in a story on on the Children’s Health Insurance Plan, which is on pace to run out of funding in Texas in January after federal authorization expired in September.La Nacion (An English translation is not available. This article also appeared in MSN Argentina, Corrientes Hoy, Patagonico, MinutoUno and Primera Edición.)http://bit.ly/2ijGKgAKUT-FM (Austin, Texas)http://bit.ly/2ATsOW2(Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast.)

Rice University touts importance of research as lawmakers pass tax on university endowments
President David Leebron is quoted in an article on Rice’s response to a Senate tax bill.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required.)http://bit.ly/2ATNugshttp://bit.ly/2nqXWWF

Tillerson’s transition into politics breaks down
Jim Krane, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in an article on Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared on the front page of the Dec. 2 print edition with a different headline, “Tillerson’s transition to politics derails.”)http://bit.ly/2jdb8tP

Holley, Brown: The grit of ‘Hometown Texas’
Columnist and former Washington Post reporter Joe Holley authored an article on “Hometown Texas,” a book he authored with Peter Brown, instructor of photography for the Glasscock School of Continuing Studies.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared in the Dec. 3 print edition.)http://bit.ly/2AqCzK7

Why is everyone so ’embattled’ right now?Jennifer Latson, an editor at the Jones Graduate School of Business’ Rice Business Wisdom, authored an article on the recent rise of the term “embattled.” Terrence Doody, the Allison Sarofim Distinguished Teaching Professor and professor of English, and Vikas Mittal, the J. Hugh Liedtke Professor of Marketing, are quoted.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared in the Dec. 4 print edition and was included in a previous Dateline when the article was posted online.) http://bit.ly/2zNENjv

Shutdowns of Texas coal plants may delay demise of others
Daniel Cohan, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, is quoted in an article on the closure of some Texas coal plants and the impact on the state’s power generation market.San Antonio Express-News (Subscription is required.)http://bit.ly/2iKU15C

From misconceptions to discrimination: Houston AIDS pioneers share their stories
Tori Williams, a co-founder of Rice’s Oral History Project, which collects and preserves the experiences of people affected by HIV/AIDS in the Houston region, participated in a World AIDS Day discussion.Houston Public Mediahttp://bit.ly/2nt3yzE

UTHealth scientists help explain how dietary fat affects stem cell differentiation
You really are what you eat … especially when it comes to fats, according to a study this week in the journal Science Advances that was co-authored by Rice undergraduate Allison Skinkle and colleagues at the Laboratory of Membrane Biology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston’s McGovern Medical School. The study examined how the type of fat a person consumes may determine whether stem cells are converted into bone cells or fat cells.TMC News (This article also appeared in Health Medicine Network.)http://bit.ly/2khdzii

Enjoy the holidays, but watch those calories
Cardiologist John Higgins authored an article about healthy habits. The byline mentions that he works as a sports cardiologist for Rice Athletics.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared in the Dec. 4 print edition.)http://bit.ly/2Aq7lCT

Houston Symphony receives Grammy nomination for the recording of ‘Wozzeck’
The Houston Symphony’s recording of “Berg: Wozzeck,” which included a chorus of students and alumni from Rice’s Shepherd School of Music, was nominated for a Grammy for best opera recording.Houston Chronicle (A similar article appeared in Houston Style Magazine.)http://bit.ly/2iL5UZn

Uber scandals could open door for Lyft
Scott Sonenshein, the Henry Gardiner Symonds Professor of Management at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is quoted in an article on a federal investigation into whether Uber stole self-driving car technology and the probe’s impact on the ride-sharing industry.KTRH.comhttp://bit.ly/2nvyeRcKTRH-AM (Houston)http://bit.ly/2AtQLAc(Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast.)

Study: Public schools get poor grades on community engagement
Although schools’ family and community engagement is the top driver of overall satisfaction among parents, public schools nationwide get poor marks for it, according to a new study by scholars at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business. Vikas Mittal, the J. Hugh Liedtke Professor of Marketing, is quoted.Houston Public Media (A similar story appeared in Education Views and TrustED.)http://bit.ly/2BGYL0V

KENS-TV (San Antonio)
Rice’s Mariachi Luna Llena competed in the Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza in San Antonio.http://bit.ly/2zPxPuc(Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)KSAT-TV (San Antonio)http://bit.ly/2AruNQl(Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)

KIAH-TV (Houston)
The podium from which President John F. Kennedy gave his “Moon Speech” at Rice Sept. 12, 1962, is featured.http://bit.ly/2ANkQxe(Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)

KTRH-AM (Houston)
Patricia Reiff, professor of physics and astronomy, discusses an asteroid, 3200 Phaethon, that will pass within 6.4 million miles of Earth.http://bit.ly/2nqirDa(Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast.)

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Baker Institute expert: NAFTA parties may ‘walk away with an agreement that allows them to claim a political victory’
The likeliest outcome of the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement is that the United States, Canada and Mexico “will walk away with an agreement that allows them to claim a political victory,” according to an issue brief from Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy authored by Tony Payan, the Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies at the Baker Institute and director of the institute’s Mexico Center.Military Technologieshttp://bit.ly/2BxdOJw

Researchers advance technique to detect ovarian cancer
Researchers at Rice and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have refined and, for the first time, run in vivo tests of a method that may allow nanotube-based probes to locate specific tumors in the body. Their ability to pinpoint tumors with submillimeter accuracy could eventually improve early detection and treatment of ovarian cancer. Mentioned are Bruce Weisman, professor of chemistry and of materials science and nanoengineering; graduate student Ching-Wei Lin, the paper’s lead author; Stephen Sanchez, graduate student and co-author; and Kathleen Beckingham, professor of biochemistry and cell biology.Science Newsline (This article was featured at Science360 News and also appeared in R&D Magazine, and a similar article appeared in the San Antonio Post, New Delhi News and Dallas Sun.)http://bit.ly/2jLj0Cd

Engineers teach robots to learn from human interactions to healp them learn
Like toddlers, robots can use a little help as they learn to function in the physical world. That’s the purpose of a Rice program that gently guides robots toward the most helpful, human-like ways to collaborate on tasks. Rice engineer Marcia O’Malley and graduate student Dylan Losey, who have refined their method to train robots by applying gentle physical feedback to machines while they perform tasks, are quoted.Electronics360 (A similar article appeared at Science Daily, Phys.org and MilTech.)http://bit.ly/2ATUn18

Nature’s toughest substances decoded
How a material breaks may be the most important property to consider when designing layered composites that mimic those found in nature. A method by Rice engineers decodes the interactions between materials and the structures they form and can help maximize their strength, toughness, stiffness and fracture strain. In a study that required more than 400 computer simulations of platelet-matrix composite materials like mother-of-pearl, Rice materials scientist Rouzbeh Shahsavari and visiting scholar Shafee Farzanian developed a design map to help with the synthesis of staggered composites for applications at any scale, from microelectronics to cars to spacecraft, where lightweight, multifunctional structural composites are key.Phys.orghttp://bit.ly/2A0KHC1

Math gets real in strong, lightweight structures
Rice engineers are using 3-D printers to turn structures that have until now existed primarily in theory into strong, light and durable materials with complex, repeating patterns. The porous structures called schwarzites are designed with computer algorithms, but Rice researchers found they could send data from the programs to printers and make macroscale, polymer models for testing. The Rice lab of materials scientist Pulickel Ajayan, the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor in Engineering and chair of the Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, is mentioned, and postdoctoral researcher Chandra Sekhar Tiwary and graduate student Peter Owuor are quoted.Space Dailyhttp://bit.ly/2nqIXwd

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

View: Washington is outsourcing the Qatar crisis
Kristian Ulrichsen, fellow for the Middle East at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in an article on how a trade blockade imposed on Qatar and the U.S.’s response will impact a Gulf Cooperation Council meeting. Ulrichsen also participated in a panel discussion at the National Press Club.The Cipher Briefhttp://bit.ly/2iPhDWKShake-up in Riyadh: Regional and international implicationsWashington Report on Middle East Affairshttp://bit.ly/2ijhWp3

Check out these hilarious future tech predictions from ‘Soonish’
“Soonish,” a book by Kelly Weinersmith, adjunct faculty member and the former Huxley Fellow in Ecology and Evolution, and her husband, Zach, is reviewed.Edgy Labshttp://bit.ly/2ApIyic

Top things to do this week in Houston: Dec. 4-10, 2017
The group Canadian Brass will perform Dec. 5 at Rice’s Stude Concert Hall.365 Things To Do in Houstonhttp://bit.ly/2zNBgSn

Gingerbread houses
Elizabeth Plummer, associate director of the Rice Counseling Center, is featured in an article on building gingerbread houses.The Buzz Magazineshttp://bit.ly/2BxFJZS

L.A. Library Aloud series: ‘The Runaway Species’
Anthony Brandt, professor of composition and theory at Rice’s Shepherd School of Music, and alumnus David Eagleman ’93, a neuroscientist at Stanford University, will discuss their book, “The Runaway Species: How Human Creativity Remakes the World,” Dec. 5 at the Los Angeles Public Library.HeyEventhttp://bit.ly/2A3Ukjm

NIH awards Acelerox grant to develop PEG-HCC nanoparticle for treatment of Alzheimer’s disease
James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Chair in Chemistry and a professor of computer science and of materials science and nanoengineering, is mentioned.Pettinga (This article also appeared in more than 30 media outlets.)http://bit.ly/2BxsSXC

‘Between Love and Madness — The Art of the Mexican Micro Comic’
An exhibition of “micro-cuentos,” which are small comic books, is on display at Kunsthaus SomoS in Berlin. The exhibition was organized by Christopher Sperandio, associate professor of visual and dramatic arts, in collaboration with students Kari Leigh Brinkley, Grace Earick, Julia Fisher, Zach Gwin, Kai Holnes, Clair Hopper, Priyanka Jain, Ilya Rakhlin, Zachary Tu and Heather Wright.FindArt (An English translation is not available.)http://bit.ly/2ATktkV

SPORTS

Hiring a football coach another step in Joe Karlgaard’s vision for Rice
Joe Karlgaard, director of Rice Athletics, is featured. Men’s head basketball coach Scott Pera, women’s head basketball coach Tina Langley, former head football coach David Bailiff and former men’s head basketball coach Mike Rhoades are mentioned.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared in the Dec. 3 print edition with a different headline, “Hire of new football coach another step in Karlgaard’s vision.”)http://bit.ly/2ihnT5G

UT Rio Grande Valley edges Rice 69-67
The Rice men’s basketball team lost to the University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley 69-67 Dec. 2 at Tudor Fieldhouse.Houston Chronicle (This Associated Press article appeared in more than 50 media outlets.)http://bit.ly/2AWOIaAArea college basketball: No. 16 Baylor falls to No. 8 Wichita St.Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article, which included a brief on the Rice game, appeared in the Dec. 3 print edition.)http://bit.ly/2Apgc7QKRIV-TV (Houston)http://bit.ly/2AMy2lO(Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)

Swim team dominant heading into winter break
A story on the University of Houston swimming team mentions the Cougars will compete against Rice at an upcoming meet.Daily Cougarhttp://bit.ly/2nvMpFV

Mason girls have state swim title uppermost in mind
An article on the Mason (Ohio) High School swimming team mentions Shannon Jelley is committed to swim at Rice.Journal-Newshttp://bit.ly/2At2qyZ

1990s A’s drafts: What might have been
Former Rice baseball player Lance Berkman is mentioned.Oakland Hardballhttp://bit.ly/2zNbm1e

NEWS RELEASES

Helping hands guide robots as they learn
Like toddlers, robots can use a little help as they learn to function in the physical world. That’s the purpose of a Rice program that gently guides robots toward the most helpful, human-like ways to collaborate on tasks. Rice engineer Marcia O’Malley and graduate student Dylan Losey have refined their method to train robots by applying gentle physical feedback to machines while they perform tasks. The goal is to simplify the training of robots expected to work efficiently side by side with humans. A paper on their study appears in IEEE Explore.http://bit.ly/2AJHuXg

Nature’s toughest substances decoded
How a material breaks may be the most important property to consider when designing layered composites that mimic those found in nature. A method by Rice engineers decodes the interactions between materials and the structures they form and can help maximize their strength, toughness, stiffness and fracture strain. In a study that required more than 400 computer simulations of platelet-matrix composite materials like mother-of-pearl, Rice materials scientist Rouzbeh Shahsavari and visiting scholar Shafee Farzanian developed a design map to help with the synthesis of staggered composites for applications at any scale, from microelectronics to cars to spacecraft, where lightweight, multifunctional structural composites are key.http://bit.ly/2klgoik

Baker Institute expert: NAFTA parties may ‘walk away with an agreement that allows them to claim a political victory’
The likeliest outcome of the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement is that the United States, Canada and Mexico “will walk away with an agreement that allows them to claim a political victory,” according to an issue brief from Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. President Donald Trump’s renegotiation team will likely get concessions on nearly all issues, although they may fall short of initial U.S. demands, the brief’s author said. “NAFTA Renegotiations: Constraints and Likely Outcome” was authored by Tony Payan, the Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies at the Baker Institute and director of the institute’s Mexico Center.http://bit.ly/2A1sJiP

About Matt Wilson

Matt Wilson is a news analyst in Rice University's Office of Public Affairs.

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